Parent and Family Engagement

Parent and Family Engagement

Overview

The Utah State Board of Education envisions schools shifting from involving parents and families to engaging parents and families and to ultimately empowering parents families.

Parent and Family Engagement is a key factor in the success of students and schools. Family engagement is one of five predictors in school improvement (Organizing Schools for Improvement: Lessons from Chicago. Chicago: University of Chicago Press), and cannot be seen as an add on, but instead should be seen as a part of teaching and learning (Dr. Karen Mapp, 3 Prerequisites of Effective Family and Community Engagement). High-quality parent and family engagement should not be viewed as a program but as a strategy and a commitment to parent and family engagement for all. 

Current Projects

Partnership for Middle School Success

The goals of this pilot initiative are to:

  • Equip and inform families to help their children thrive in secondary school
  • Build stronger connections between families, educators, and community partners
  • Develop successful student transitions in the middle school years
  • Build partnership capacity across the school community

Partnership for Middle School Success Information PPT

Science of Reading - Community Engagement

Utah’s schools are shifting to literacy instruction rooted in the science of reading (SOR). The state has set an ambitious goal that 70% or more of Utah’s third-grade students will read on grade level by July 2027. This is an exciting time, and the state is marshaling its resources to ensure this shift is completed thoughtfully and comprehensively. Utah is taking a holistic approach to meet its literacy goals by engaging communities, families, and businesses – an important set of stakeholders in educational initiatives. 

The state is providing significant training and resources to educators at every level in support of the implementation of the science of reading. To complement these efforts, Utah seeks to provide training and support for families and the local community. Research shows that parent and family engagement is key to student educational success. Schools that are supported by their surrounding systems are better positioned to achieve their goals compared to those that lack such support. Families and local communities have critical roles to play in tandem with that of formal educators in supporting Utah’s children reading at grade level by third grade. 

To support these efforts, schools need a toolkit of engagement strategies that will lead to effective involvement of families and communities. This could include developing a well-functioning community school team, effectively organizing community partnerships to supplement existing resources for families, training tutors, staff, and volunteers in the science of reading, planning effective literacy-themed community events, and more as decided by the LEA. Overall, participants in SB 127 Community Engagement and Science of Reading will be trained to effectively engage their communities and create partnerships with families and community members that support a whole community effort to ensure students are reading on grade level. 

Resources for LEAs

 

Asset Mapping

 

Community Schools

Resources

Tools

 

Engagement and Strategy Planning Tools

Resources

Tools

 

Family School Partnership Compact and Groups

Resources

 

General Recommendations

Resources

Tools

 

Grandparents

Resources

 

Newcomer Americans

Resources

 

Resources in Event Planning

FACE Event Planning Resources

Academic Parent Teacher Teams

Literacy Event

Career Day

 

Self-Reflection Tools

Resources

Tools

 

What is Family and Community Engagement?

Resources:

Tools:

Contact

Susie Estrada
School Improvement Program and Special Education Parent Specialist
Phone: (385) 295-7891 | Email